December 2, 2023
Source: Boxing Scene
Photo Source: Boxing Scene
With each round that passed, the star shined brighter.
Its name?
Subriel Matías.
Though Showtime’s pay-per-view finale was built to promote the brands of David Benavidez and Jermall Charlo, there was no more compelling luminary in the Las Vegas sky by Sunday’s dawn than the 31-year-old Puerto Rican who had been flying well under most 140-pound radar.
Matias arrived to the former Mandalay Bay Events Center with the division’s lowest-profile title in tow – taking a back seat in The Ring’s rankings to WBO king Teofimo Lopez and WBC boss Regis Prograis, and surely in terms of recognition to well-connected WBA champion in recess Rolando Romero.
And after an initial six minutes in which he was methodically pursued and systemically punished by Uzbek southpaw Shohjahon Ergashev, it seemed the positioning may not have been wrong.
Lead right hooks and straight left hands drove Matias backward and kept him at a manageable distance for two rounds, but once it became clear that the unbeaten and third-ranked (by the IBF) contender was unable to land blows that could do legitimate damage, the outcome was no longer in doubt.
The champion found his jab and began breaking his foe down with pressure in the third, walking defiantly through what remained of Ergashev’s offense and snapping the challenger’s head back with a right uppercut in the fourth. A pair of left hooks rattled him in the fifth and set the ball rolling toward what wound up as a corner surrender when Ergashev suggested a leg injury was too much to bear.
“When I started feeling his punches in the first round, I knew he didn’t have the power to knock me out,” he said. “That’s when I started attacking. For left-handed southpaw fighters, I just need three or four rounds to decipher them. Then, what happened (Saturday) usually happens.”
Indeed, it was Ergashev’s first loss after 23 wins and 20 KOs as a pro and kept Matias alongside Artur Beterbiev in the rare air of perfect stoppage rates with finishes in each of his 20 pro wins.
They’re the only men’s champions – Beterbiev has 19 KOs in 19 wins – without a distance win.
So, come Sunday morning, one thing was competitively clear.
Matias is bound for bigger things.
And when it came to specifics, another star joined him above the Nevada horizon.
Gervonta Davis.
Upon review of Matias’ near-weight promotional brethren with the Premier Boxing Champions apparatus, precisely none reach the intrigue level of the Baltimore-born “Tank” – with no PBC clientele in the IBF’s top-15 outside of 10th-ranked Dominican southpaw Elvis Rodriguez.
Given the promotional allegiances of the aforementioned Lopez (Top Rank) and Prograis (Matchroom), it’s wholly unlikely that Matias goes the unification route anytime soon. And given the reticence of the Mayweather-linked Romero to chase anything beyond special privileges, he’s probably a no-go, too.
Which means, if Matias wants a spotlight, Davis is the guy to pinpoint.
A 29-year-old who’s frequently carried the PBC flag, the “Tank” has held one belt or another in three weight classes – including a successful stint at 140 pounds in which he snagged a dubious WBA trinket with a KO of Mario Barrios atop a Showtime PPV card in 2021.
Davis has dropped back to lightweight for each of four fights since but seeing how many of the biggest fish at 135 have already swam upstream to 140, it might be time for a wave of his own.
Former four-belt lightweight champ Devin Haney will fight Prograis for the WBC’s title at 140 early next month in San Francisco, while ex-rival Ryan Garcia has already declared his intention to chase his first career championship at junior welterweight/super lightweight, too.
In fact, unless Davis can cross the promotional river to reel in Top Rank’s Shakur Stevenson, who claimed the WBC’s belt at 135 earlier this month, putting on a few pounds may equate to chasing greatness.
Chasing zeroes, too.
“Why not?” ex-HBO blow-by-blow man Jim Lampley, who was ringside in Las Vegas on Saturday, told Boxing Scene. “Punchers print money. Matias is a puncher.”
And if styles make fights, what a remarkable fight it would be.
Two guys who can crack, who can take a big punch, and who tend to rely more on fortitude and ferocity than finesse and fundamentals. Matias stands two-plus inches taller – 5-foot-8 to 5-foot-5 1/2 – and would hold a four-plus inch edge in reach, 71 inches to 67 1/2, meaning it’s far more likely things would evolve into a demolition derby than a dance contest.
Precisely, according to Showtime’s Al Bernstein, why it’s unlikely to happen.
“I don't think (Davis) will do that,” Bernstein told Boxing Scene. “Moving up to 140 to face Matias seems like a task I'm not sure they need to undertake. Fights against other lightweights seem more feasible.”
Davis, who defeated Garcia at a 136-pound catchweight in April, may opt to stay at 135 to meet the likes of Frank Martin or Isaac Cruz early next year.
But if he’s looking for a fight that’ll really move the needle and potentially set up even bigger ones in a hot weight class, Matias is a call he ought to make while he’s still willing to answer.
“Right now, nobody knows what Tank or his brain trust are doing,” SiriusXM host Randy Gordon told Boxing Scene. “He has been working out and sparring, but nobody around him will say if anything is planned. Will he stay at 135? Move to 140 where several 135-pounders have gone?
“Certainly, Tank v Matias is a very interesting match. How about Matias vs. Rolly Romero? Fun fight. Move over 140-pounders, Subriel Matias is joining the party.”
This week’s title-fight schedule:
No title fights scheduled.
Last week's picks: 0-2 (LOSS: Ergashev, Garcia)
2023 picks record: 41-15 (73.2 percent)
Overall picks record: 1,292-423 (75.3 percent)
NOTE: Fights previewed are only those involving a sanctioning body's full-fledged title-holder – no interim, diamond, silver, etc. Fights for WBA "world championships" are only included if no "super champion" exists in the weight class.
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